Monument record MDO18715 - A37 Western Link; Late Iron Age/ Early Roman Structure 394

Evidence for a Late Iron Age/ Early Roman structure was discovered during excavations along the route of the Dorchester By-pass, Western Link. Structure [394] was located on the coombe side on the upper terrace in Trenches G and F, extending over the corners of the two trenches. It was subrectangular, c. 8m long and 4m wide. To the east it ran under the baulk and to the west it had been destroyed by the later Roman holloway. The surviving edges to the south and north were steep sided and cut into the chalk to a maximum depth of 0.5m to create a sunken floor. No features were identified on the floor surface and no occupation debris was recovered and there was no indication of function. After abandonment the structure was sealed by an orange-brown silty clay colluvium containing a sherd of late 1st-early 2nd century Samian pottery.

Found during a programme of archaeological work conducted by Wessex Archaeology along the route of the Dorchester By-pass, Western Link, Fordington Bottom, Dorchester between 1986 and 1988. The results of the excavations have been published as a Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society Monograph; (DNHAS Monograph 11). The numbers in square brackets below refer to the context and feature numbers used in the published report (1). A series of features was recorded in Trenches F and G/H south of the main area of burial in Trench K. Most are poorly dated by artefacts but were startigraphically early and they may represent sporadic activity during the 1st century AD. Two structures [394] & [420] were found on the coombe side on the upper terrace in Trenches G & F. Structure [394] extended over the corners of the two trenches. It was subrectangular, c. 8m long and 4m wide. To the east it ran under the baulk and to the west it had been destroyed by the later Roman holloway. The surviving edges to the south and north were steep sided and cut into the chalk to a maximum depth of 0.5m to create a sunken floor. No features were identified on the floor surface and no occupation debris was recovered and there was no indication of function. After abandonment the structure was sealed by an orange-brown silty clay colluvium containing a sherd of late 1st-early 2nd century Samian pottery.

Record last edited

Jan 26 2007 5:24AM